Grab More Market Share: How to Wrangle Business Away from Lazy Competitors

After the Experience . . . Came Empathy

Our own research conducted in 2006 prompted customers to inform us that escalating housing costs (a factor that is clearly out of our control) required both members of the household to work long hours. Customers were busier than ever just trying to pay their mortgage and SUV payments. And while many still wanted a great experience, they also wanted you to do all of the heavy lifting for them. They simply didn't have time or the expertise. Business consultant David Maister, who coined the phrase “trusted advisor” (and wrote the book on this subject) described the tailor-made solution for this phenomenon. At the core of what trusted advisor means in the context of customer service is “empathy.” Customers need someone they can trust, someone who understands their fragile emotional states, someone who can hold their hands as they cross into unknown territory. My company even started a Customer Empathy Institute in conjunction with California State University at Monterey Bay to coach leaders on how to behave as trusted advisors—albeit with empathy.

Now, as I've described, technological advances in e-commerce have given rise to the next thing they want: customer urgency.